Service Bulletin for F30 335i (N55) Stop Start Problems

BMW has issued a technical service bulletin for the stop / start (MSA system) issues previously reported by several Bimmerfest Members. The problem is only related to F30 335i 3 series powered by the N55 inline six cylinder engine. The problem is that the engine will be stopped and started correctly by the stop/start MSA system, however, after the restart the engine will again shut off unexpectedly. The system will display a message to the driver that the stop/start feature has been disabled and the transmission (automatic) is put into neutral automatically.

The engine can be started manually by the driver after this has happened using the start button. This happens intermittent making this very frustrating to drivers and hard for technicians to diagnose. Furthermore the is no relevant errors logged into the ECU fault system.

BMW cites an 'unfavorable DME software application' as the source of the issue for cars produced between 11/2/2011 and 2/29/2012. To the automotive enthusiasts that loosely translates to "we screwed up". BMW is owning up to the issue by issuing service bulletin 10 12 00 09 00. Everyone with a 2012 F30 3 series is of course covered under the warranty so besides the hassle of getting your 3 series recoded at the dealership it is an easy fix.

How many people have been having this issue with their F30 stop/start?

thats ****ed up, they need to be able to update these cars via wireless from anywhere, you should be able to go into the idive and update.

good think this isnt happeneing in N20

Aussie_Chris commented: April 25, 2012, 7:24 am

Well, after my long wait for my May 21 Production date, at least I won't get this issue

jzcrna commented: April 25, 2012, 9:35 am

Ive had about 5 or six stalls in one month and have 2200 miles on the car right now. It hasn't been that big of a deal for me and I cannot justify spending time at the dealer just to get the update at this point.

stampchez commented: April 25, 2012, 9:43 am

Is this just for autos or does it affect manuals too?

SoonerJohn commented: April 25, 2012, 9:57 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by justinnum1

thats ****ed up, they need to be able to update these cars via wireless from anywhere, you should be able to go into the idive and update.

This fix is not a minor 5 minute update that can be sent over the air. It took several hours for them to run the update on mine and it had to completely reprogram and reinitialize the car.

SoonerJohn commented: April 25, 2012, 10:07 am

I have experienced the problem several times. In fact, I can recreate it almost every time by getting in the car on a cool morning, driving 0.7 miles to a stoplight and stopping. It will shut the engine with the temperature gauge is still on the bottom peg even though it is not supposed to shut off unless the engine is warmed up. When I release the brake to drive off, about 75% of the time, the engine will stall when it attempts to restart and I have to push the button to start it back up and put it back in gear to drive off. Both annoying and dangerous!

I took my car in last Thursday because of this issue. They attempted the software update and it failed the first time. Then BMW made some sort of change, re-downloaded the update to the dealer's server, and they did the update again, which went through successfully on the second attempt. The dealer told me on Monday that the car was working as designed, so I went and picked it up and drove home with no issues.

Tuesday morning I got in the car, drove to the same stoplight and it still did the exact same thing it was doing before - shut the engine off when it wasn't yet up to operating temperature.

So the car is back at the dealer again now. The regional rep from BMW is visiting the dealership today and is supposed to be getting involved to make sure it gets fixed correctly this time around.

Of course I could alway just press the override button, but I want the d@mn car working correctly!

Weaselboy commented: April 25, 2012, 10:16 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by SoonerJohn

Tuesday morning I got in the car, drove to the same stoplight and it still did the exact same thing it was doing before - shut the engine off when it wasn't yet up to operating temperature.

Depending on how cold it is when this happens, that may still be within the design specs. I don't think "operating temp." and fully warmed up are the same thing as far as auto stop/start are concerned.

I know on mine it shuts down at a stop sign 60 feet from my house on 50 degree mornings.

Mine was a late February production (production complete 2/24) and I am not having the stalling problems others are reporting, so maybe I got the newer software from the factory.

tturedraider commented: April 25, 2012, 11:26 pm

At least there is a fail proof way to avoid this problem. Disable start/stop everytime you drive the car.

SoonerJohn commented: April 26, 2012, 12:17 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by Weaselboy

Depending on how cold it is when this happens, that may still be within the design specs. I don't think "operating temp." and fully warmed up are the same thing as far as auto stop/start are concerned.

You were correct on this! They ran all sorts of diagnostics on my car, talked to BMW extensively about it, etc. in the end, the word is that my car is now operating as designed after the software update. I just wasn't expecting it to shut off that quickly after starting to drive it.

Side note: the temperature gauge in it is oil temperature, not water temperature. I hadn't looked close enough to notice that until the Service Advisor pointed it out to me today.

tturedraider commented: April 26, 2012, 12:32 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by SoonerJohn

You were correct on this! They ran all sorts of diagnostics on my car, talked to BMW extensively about it, etc. in the end, the word is that my car is now operating as designed after the software update. I just wasn't expecting it to shut off that quickly after starting to drive it.

Side note: the temperature gauge in it is oil temperature, not water temperature. I hadn't looked close enough to notice that until the Service Advisor pointed it out to me today.

They switched to the oil temp gauge when they went to the turbos.

radari216 commented: April 26, 2012, 1:38 am

You should be able to use the iDrive to default this option to the "Off" position for those who don't want to use Start Stop Engine feature. Why force customers to use a feature they don't want and make them shut the thing off every time they start the car.

jackson328xi commented: April 26, 2012, 1:34 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by radari216

You should be able to use the iDrive to default this option to the "Off" position for those who don't want to use Start Stop Engine feature. Why force customers to use a feature they don't want and make them shut the thing off every time they start the car.

This seems like a really good/obvious idea.

tagheuer commented: April 26, 2012, 1:41 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by radari216

You should be able to use the iDrive to default this option to the "Off" position for those who don't want to use Start Stop Engine feature. Why force customers to use a feature they don't want and make them shut the thing off every time they start the car.

you mean you have to disable this feature every single time you enter and start the car?

I'm very suprised they would make this so inconvienent.

westwest888 commented: April 26, 2012, 5:43 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by tagheuer

you mean you have to disable this feature every single time you enter and start the car?

I'm very suprised they would make this so inconvienent.

It's a feature, not a bug. I think it should be a switch, like in an aircraft. Has anyone hacked that? Maybe the EPA says you have to.

m8o commented: April 27, 2012, 12:02 am

The Start/Stop feature is to save gas. Think of how much gas you'll save by not driving it if you're making a left across traffic, the Start/Stop feature stalls your car right as your nose gets stuck-out into the other lane, and it gets smashed by oncoming traffic...

evergreen2000 commented: April 27, 2012, 12:28 am

I'm sure its some legal mumbo jumbo where by to get CAFE credit they have to make it by default hard to turn off. Anyways I bet BMW isn't a big fan of that legal requirement and we should see some aftermarket mechanism (could even be secretly supported by BMW) by which this will be taken care of in the future.

jtuds commented: April 27, 2012, 12:16 pm

I don't have the car so I can't say I have had the problem but during my test drive the salesman couldn't get the start/stop to actually start and stop.

Turbo6 commented: April 27, 2012, 1:14 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by westwest888

It's a feature, not a bug.

That's funny. Do you work on our corporate IT help desk?

rtgirard commented: April 27, 2012, 1:16 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by Turbo6

That's funny. Do you work on our corporate IT help desk?

No, but I do... get back to work!

sr5959 commented: April 27, 2012, 1:59 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by tagheuer

you mean you have to disable this feature every single time you enter and start the car?

I'm very suprised they would make this so inconvienent.

Agree that the reason the default setting cannot be changed is probably for official fuel figures/CAFE/etc.

But, they have made it very easy to turn off each time you start the car, the button is right above the Start button.

dimok commented: April 28, 2012, 10:01 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by sr5959

Agree that the reason the default setting cannot be changed is probably for official fuel figures/CAFE/etc.

.

I don't think so. On my Cayenne there is a button that you press that shuts off the start/stop function and it will not be activated until you press it again. I, personally, never turn it on.

90degreeman commented: April 30, 2012, 1:09 am

I had it happen once when I did my ED in March. It was in the middle of a turn late in Germany and I freaked out. There was a message on the screen, but I fumbled around to get it started.

I do remember that it started but then stopped again within a few seconds.

TLR305 commented: May 16, 2012, 8:53 am

Does anyone know why it shuts off as you are parked but then turns back on before you engage the gas (maybe 20 seconds later) ???

sudi commented: May 16, 2012, 10:48 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by TLR305

Does anyone know why it shuts off as you are parked but then turns back on before you engage the gas (maybe 20 seconds later) ???

In my test drive experience, it turns on not when you engage the gas, but when you release the brake. Perhaps that's what happened with you?

Safety mode
After the engine switches off automatically, it will not start again automatically if any one of the following conditions are met.
- The driver's safety belt is unbuckled and the driver's door is open.
- The hood was unlocked.

Some indicator lamps light up for varying lengths of time. The engine can only be started via the Start/ Stop button.

sudi commented: May 16, 2012, 10:56 am

Or perhaps this:
Note
Even if driving away was not intended, the deactivated engine starts up automatically in the following situations:
- Excessive warming of the passenger compartment when the cooling function is switched on.
- The steering wheel is turned.
- Automatic transmission: the transmission position is changed from D to N, R, or M/S.
- Automatic transmission: the transmission position is changed from P to N, D, R, or M/ S.
- The vehicle begins rolling.
- Fogging of the windows when the automatic climate control is switched on.
- The vehicle battery charge is very low.
- Excessive cooling of the passenger compartment when the heating is switched on.
- Low brake vacuum pressure; this can occur, for example, if the brake pedal is depressed a number of times in succession.

Mine was a late February production (production complete 2/24) and I am not having the stalling problems others are reporting, so maybe I got the newer software from the factory.

I spoke too soon. Had this bug hit my car and got the software update applied last Friday. No hassle from the dealer. I just told them what it was doing and that I had heard about a software update to fix, and they did it.

fritzpaul commented: February 7, 2014, 12:34 pm

Not a fan of the start/stop. 99%+ of the time, I disable it immediately when I start the car

sudi commented: February 7, 2014, 1:18 pm

After almost 2 years of using this feature, I think it is a big win in terms of conserving gasoline.

I now get paranoid if the feature is not working at stop lights during cold starts. Or when i'm driving a car that doesn't have this feature.

fritzpaul commented: February 7, 2014, 1:37 pm

I've also tried the ECO mode. I can drive about 150 miles and it tells me I can get 3 more miles on my tank of gas. Considering the Herculean effort required to depress the gas pedal in ECO mode, totally useless, in my opinion.

falar commented: February 7, 2014, 2:03 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by sudi

After almost 2 years of using this feature, I think it is a big win in terms of conserving gasoline.

I now get paranoid if the feature is not working at stop lights during cold starts. Or when i'm driving a car that doesn't have this feature.

To each their own. I despise this feature and wish I could get it coded to default to "off".

FrogmanF30 commented: February 7, 2014, 8:20 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by falar

To each their own. I despise this feature and wish I could get it coded to default to "off".

You can. Check out the coding threads.

falar commented: February 7, 2014, 8:52 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by FrogmanF30

You can. Check out the coding threads.

I heard a rumor that BMW sent a bulletin to dealers to stop coding it that way but there is only one way to find out.

FrogmanF30 commented: February 8, 2014, 4:56 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by falar

I heard a rumor that BMW sent a bulletin to dealers to stop coding it that way but there is only one way to find out.

If you can find a dealer that will do it, they will change it to remember the last setting.

If you want it to default off, you need to code it yourself (or find someone to code it for you).
The dealers can't make that setting change. I've coded dozens of cars to default auto-start-stop off (along with enabling many other settings that are disabled at the factory).

Ahmad Ayesh commented: November 29, 2014, 9:39 am

I have the same Issue in my car F30, 320I (2013), did your problem is solved?